Ordinary Days and Tender Places

“Margaret Bendroth brings a historian’s mind and a mother’s heart to this thoughtful and searching account. Even as she acknowledges the particular challenges of adoptive kinship, Bendroth affirms families formed in the crucible of loss.”
—Barbara Melosh, author of Strangers and Kin: The American Way of Adoption

“Margaret Bendroth blends history, personal narrative, and cultural insight to invite readers to reconsider what family means and why it matters. As a Black adoptee raised across racial and cultural boundaries and a student of transracial adoption, I felt a deep connection to this work. A powerful read for adoptees, adoptive families, and anyone seeking a deeper understanding of kinship and human connection.”
—Rhonda M. Roorda, author of Torn from the Root: A Memoir of a Black Transracial Adoptee

“Bendroth has given us a thoughtful history and discussion of adoption as it has been understood in the United States, with its limitations, problems, and concerns—yes, both ordinary and tender.”
—Barbara Katz Rothman, author of Weaving a Family: Untangling Race and Adoption

“Historian and adoptive parent Margaret Bendroth is a compassionate guide through the complex terrain of adoption. Marked by emotional candor and nuanced analysis, this wise book offers companionship for adoptive parents and for anyone interested in the infinite variety of loving families.”
—Amy Gottlieb, author of The Beautiful Possible

Margaret Bendroth is the author of The Spiritual Practice of Remembering and Fundamentalism and Gender, 1875 to the Present, among other books.

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